Nick Skelton
Nick Skelton CBE is a British show jumping legend whose individual Olympic gold medal at Rio 2016 — won at the age of 58 aboard Big Star — made him one of the oldest riders ever to top an Olympic podium. His career spans seven Olympic Games across four decades.
Seven Olympic Games
Skelton first represented Team GBR at Los Angeles 1984 and went on to compete at Seoul 1988, Barcelona 1992, Atlanta 1996, Beijing 2008, London 2012 and Rio 2016 — a span of 32 years that is almost unmatched across any Olympic sport.
London 2012 team gold and Rio 2016 individual gold
At London 2012, Skelton was part of the Team GBR quartet that won team gold — Britain’s first Olympic team gold in show jumping in 60 years. Four years later, riding Big Star in Rio, he jumped a double-clear in the final to take individual gold — a result that drew a standing ovation from the Olympic Stadium crowd and made him a household name outside the sport.
Championship Record
- Olympic Games: Individual gold (Rio 2016), Team gold (London 2012), seven-time Olympian (1984–2016)
- World Championships: Multiple team medals
- European Championships: Multi-time team medallist
- Hickstead Derby: Multi-time winner
Horses
- Big Star — Rio 2016 individual gold, London 2012 team gold
- Everest Lastic — senior championship campaigner
- Apollo — 1980s / 1990s era Grand Prix horse
Skelton retired from competition after Rio 2016 and was appointed CBE in the 2017 New Year Honours.